In-store tintable non-infrared-absorptive paint and stain system

ABSTRACT

A custom color paint or stain tinting system employs at least one light-colored non-infrared-absorptive base paint or stain packaged in a point-of-sale container and an array of colorants including an infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, a non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, and one or more additional liquid colorants made with non-infrared-absorptive pigments. The infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant or non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant may respectively be used to make custom-tinted interior or exterior paints and stains.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 13/148,282filed Aug. 5, 2011, now allowed, which is in turn a national stagefiling under 35 U.S.C. §371 of International Application No.PCT/US2010/023654 filed Feb. 9, 2010, which in turn claims priorityunder 35 U.S.C. §119 to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/151,115filed Feb. 9, 2009, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD

This invention relates to point-of-sale customized-color architecturalpaint and stain tinting systems, such as those used in retail paintstores to make custom-tinted house paints or stains.

BACKGROUND

Architectural paint and stain manufacturers typically distributepremixed paints and stains in a small number of popular colors. Toaccommodate consumer desires and enable matching of existing painted orstained surfaces, manufacturers typically also distribute a set oftintable base paints or stains and several concentrated colorants. Theseare combined at point-of-sale outlets using colorant dispensing andshaker mixing equipment to make small batch lots of custom-tinted paintor stain in a much larger array of colors than the limited color arrayavailable in premixed products.

Owing in part to industry custom and the available colorant dispensingequipment, the custom color systems from different paint or stainmanufacturers tend to have somewhat similar components. For example, atypical custom color paint system may employ several (e.g., 2 to 4)tintable base paints ranging for example from a bright white baseintended to accept at most a small quantity of colorant (viz., having arelatively small available headspace in the base paint container), to arelatively unpigmented clear base intended to accept a much largerquantity of colorant (viz., in a container initially containing forexample about 9-10% less base than the bright white base andconsequently having greater available headspace for colorant addition).Base paints and stains may employ various binders (e.g., natural orsynthetic resins), binder forms (e.g., solution polymers or latexpolymers) and vehicles (e.g., solvent-borne or water-borne versions),and may provide various dried surface finishes (e.g., matte, semi-glossor gloss finishes). Some manufacturers also sell colored base paints(e.g. a red, a blue and yellow colored base) which are intended to becombined with additional colorant(s) when one coat hiding power isdesired for strongly-tinted custom paint shades. The colorants in customcolor paint or stain systems may for example be volumetrically meteredfrom a multiple-colorant dispensing station, with 12 paint or staincolorants typically being employed in colorant dispensing stations forthe U.S. market, and more (e.g., 16 or 24 colorants) sometimes beingemployed in other markets. The black colorant in such custom colorsystems typically contains a suspension of carbon black particles. Somepaint bases are also shaded with carbon black to improve hiding. Carbonblack is highly infrared-absorptive.

Homes and other buildings in tropical and other sunny regions normallyare painted or stained in light colors to minimize solar gain. If tintedwith some of the dark colorants employed in conventional custom colorsystems, the resulting paints or stains would in many cases beundesirably infrared-absorptive. Some paint manufacturers have developedpremixed infrared-reflective external paints having dark colors, usingrelatively expensive infrared-reflective dark pigments. These premixedpaints are available in a limited color palette.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It would be desirable to provide both interior andnon-infrared-absorptive exterior custom-tinted paints at point-of-saleoutlets, and to do so without requiring a dedicated dispensing systemand colorant set for external paint tinting. We have found that byemploying a colorant array including (i) an infrared-absorptive blackliquid colorant (e.g., a colorant containing a carbon black pigmentdispersion), (ii) a non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant (e.g.,a colorant containing a perylene black or a mixed metal oxide blackpigment dispersion), and (iii) one or more additional liquid colorantsmade with non-infrared-absorptive pigments, we can provide apoint-of-sale custom color paint or stain tinting system having a lownumber of bases and colorants, and having the capability to providecustom-tinted interior and exterior non-infrared-absorptive paints orstains in a wide gamut range of tints ranging from light pastels to darkcolors. In addition, we can limit the number of colorants in the arrayand make room in some existing automated colorant dispensers for the useof the two black colorants by replacing one or both of the brown oxideand raw umber colorants normally employed in a colorant array with aprecisely-metered mixture of yellow, red and black colorants, and byusing the non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant in such mixturewhen a custom-tinted exterior paint or stain is desired and using thetypically less expensive infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant insuch mixture when a custom-tinted interior paint or stain is desired.

The invention thus provides, in one aspect, a point-of-sale custom colorsystem for tinting base paints and stains, the system comprising:

-   -   a) at least one light-colored (e.g., white)        non-infrared-absorptive base paint or stain packaged in a        point-of-sale container with a volume of about 0.2 to 20 L        equipped with an openable and reclosable lid, cap or other        closure for an opening through which colorant may be dispensed        from an automated or manual colorant dispenser into the base        paint or stain; and    -   b) an array of colorants including (i) an infrared-absorptive        black liquid colorant, (ii) a non-infrared-absorptive black        liquid colorant, and (iii) one or more additional liquid        colorants made with non-infrared-absorptive pigments, the        colorants being packaged in containers with a volume of about        0.5 to about 5 L and from which colorant may be supplied to such        a colorant dispenser and thence dispensed into the base paint or        stain.

In a preferred embodiment, the non-infrared-absorptive black liquidcolorant and non-infrared-absorptive yellow and red colorants from thearray are dispensed into the base paint or stain using an automatedcolorant dispenser having a minimum fluid dispensing quantity less than0.01 fluid ounce (<0.3 mL) when an exterior paint or stain with a brownoxide or raw umber tint is required, and the infrared-absorptive blackliquid colorant and the yellow and red colorants are so dispensed intothe base paint or stain when an interior paint or stain with a brownoxide or raw umber tint is required.

The invention provides, in another aspect, a method for point-of-salecustom paint or stain tinting, the method comprising dispensing into abase paint or stain one or more colorants selected from an array ofcolorants including (i) an infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant,(ii) a non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, and (iii) one ormore additional liquid colorants made with non-infrared-absorptivepigments, wherein the non-infrared-absorptive black colorant isdispensed into the base paint or stain when a black-pigmented exteriorpaint or stain is required, and the infrared-absorptive black colorantis dispensed into the base paint or stain when a black-pigmentedinterior paint or stain is required.

In a preferred embodiment of the above method, thenon-infrared-absorptive black colorant and non-infrared-absorptiveyellow and red colorants from the array are dispensed into the basepaint or stain when an exterior paint or stain with a brown oxide or rawumber tint is required, and the infrared-absorptive black colorant andthe yellow and red colorants are dispensed into the base paint or stainwhen an interior paint or stain with a brown oxide or raw umber tint isrequired.

The custom-tinted exterior paints and stains have low heat buildup whenexposed to bright sunlight even when made up in dark custom-tintedcolors. The system may optionally include additionalnon-infrared-absorptive base paints or stains (e.g., a gray liquid basepaint or stain made with white pigment and non-infrared-absorptive darkpigment) to facilitate making some intermediate tints and shades.

The disclosed system and method permit point-of-sale formulation andsale of both interior and exterior custom-tinted paints and stains whileavoiding or minimizing added inventory, dedicated dispensers ordedicated floor space.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are perspective views of embodiments of the disclosedpaint or stain tinting system; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the disclosed colorantarray.

Like reference symbols in the various figures of the drawing indicatelike elements. The elements in the drawing are not to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Unless the context indicates otherwise the following terms shall havethe following meaning and shall be applicable to the singular andplural:

The terms “a,” “an,” “the,” “at least one,” and “one or more” are usedinterchangeably. Thus, for example, a colorant composition that contains“a” pigment means that the colorant composition may include “one ormore” pigments.

The terms “architectural paints” and “architectural stains” respectivelymean paints and stains for use on interior or exterior building orconstruction surfaces, e.g., walls, trim, floors, decks, railings,ceilings, roofs (including metal roofing, shingles and tiles), roadways,sidewalks, etc.

The term “automated colorant dispenser” means a dispenser for paint orstain colorants which is controlled or controllable viaelectronically-regulated precision pumps or otherelectronically-regulated fluid flow management devices so as to meterautomatically quantities of one or more liquid colorants into a basepaint or stain container and thereby facilitate preparation of tintedpaints or stains whose tints are selected from an array of tints. Theamounts and types of colorants selected by such an automated colorantdispenser will optionally and preferably be controlled using softwareand a suitable database.

The term “binder” means a film-forming natural or synthetic polymersuitable for use in a paint or stain.

The terms “blue-hued”, “green-hued” and “red-hued” respectively refer tothe blue, green and red principal hues in the Munsell color system.

The term “concentrated liquid colorant” means a composition added to apoint-of sale container whose interior volume is largely (e.g., twothirds of the container volume or more) but not completely alreadyfilled with a base paint or stain so as to alter the hue or lightness ofsuch base paint or stain, and which contains pigment or dye and anoptional vehicle but is substantially free of binder.

The term “custom-tinted” when used with respect to a system or methodfor tinting base paints or stains means that one or more colorants canbe dispensed into a base paint or stain and mixed to provide finishedpaint or stains in a wide variety (e.g., more than one hundred or evenmore than one thousand) of preselected formulated colors or, if desired,a match for randomly-selected colors. The preselected formulated colorswill ordinarily be viewed by potential end users using printed colorcharts or displayed computer images.

The term “dark-colored” when used with respect to a paint or stain meansthat the paint or stain has an L* value less than 60 as determined bycasting a 25 μm dry thickness coating film over the white part of aBYK-Gardner No. PA-2811 opacity drawdown chart (from BYK-Gardner USA)and measuring L* as defined in the ASTM International Standards on Colorand Appearance Measurement: 8th Edition.

The term “non-infrared-absorptive” when used with respect to a paint orstain means that the paint or stain when cast as an at least 40 μm drythickness coating film over the white part of the above-mentionedBYK-Gardner opacity drawdown chart will have a total solar reflectance(TSR) of at least 10 as measured using the procedure of ASTM E-971-88(Reapproved 2003). TSR is a measure of the total percentage of incidentsolar radiation reflected by an object, and a 10 TSR value means that10% of the total solar radiation is reflected by the object. The term“non-infrared-absorptive” when used with respect to a colorant orpigment means that when sufficient such colorant or pigment is added toa clear base paint so as to provide an opaque (as defined below) filmwhen cast as an at least 40 μm dry thickness coating film over the whiteand black parts of the above-mentioned BYK-Gardner opacity drawdownchart, the dry film will have a TSR of at least 10 as measured over thewhite part of the drawdown chart.

The term “manual colorant dispenser” means a dispenser for paint orstain colorants which is equipped with manually-movable pistons whosestrokes have been indexed to meter manually quantities of one or moreliquid colorants into a base paint or stain container and therebyfacilitate preparation of tinted paints or stains whose tints areselected from an array of tints.

The term “minimum fluid dispensing quantity” means the smallest amount,expressed on a volumetric basis, of liquid colorant that can reliably bedispensed by a manual or automated colorant dispenser. In case thedispenser controls the weight rather than volume of dispensed colorant,the phrase “minimum fluid dispensing quantity” means the mass of fluidcorresponding to a recited volumetric amount. Dispenser reliability maybe evaluated visually, by preparing a series of custom-tinted paintbatches with the same tint recipe and comparing the appearance ofpainted samples made using the batches to ascertain if anybatch-to-batch differences in appearance can be observed by an averagehuman observer. Dispenser reliability may also be evaluatedquantitatively, using for example the CIELAB color difference formulaΔE=[ΔL²+Δa²+Δb²]^(1/2) and selecting a dispenser which can providebatch-to-batch variations of 0.5 ΔE units or less.

The term “opaque” when used in respect to a dry coating film means thatthe film has a contrast ratio greater than 95%. The contrast ratio isdetermined by dividing the L* value measured over the black portion ofthe above-mentioned BYK-Gardner opacity drawdown chart by the L* valuemeasured over the white portion.

The term “paint” means a coating composition including pigment andbinder which when applied to form a thin (e.g., 100 μm) wet thicknesscoating film on a freshly-sanded smooth wood surface, will when driedhide both the wood grain and its texture and will present a new surfacewith its own appearance.

The term “pigment volume concentration” when used in respect to a paint,stain or colorant means the total percentage of dried coating volumeoccupied by all pigment species in the coating.

The term “point-of-sale” means a site at which custom-mixed paints orstains are tinted and mixed in small batch lots (e.g., one half pint,one pint, one quart, one liter, one gallon, four liter, five gallon or20 liter containers, corresponding to containers from about 0.2 to 20 L)for sale to end-users (e.g., painters, builders and homeowners).Representative point-of-sale outlets include retail paint stores,hardware stores, building supply stores (including warehouses), anddistribution centers.

The terms “preferred” and “preferably” refer to embodiments of theinvention that may afford certain benefits, under certain circumstances.However, other embodiments may also be preferred, under the same orother circumstances. Furthermore, the recitation of one or morepreferred embodiments does not imply that other embodiments are notuseful, and is not intended to exclude other embodiments from the scopeof the invention.

The term “solvent-borne” when used in respect to a paint, stain orcolorant means that the major liquid vehicle or carrier for the paint,stain or colorant is a nonaqueous solvent or mixture of nonaqueoussolvents.

The term “stain” means a coating composition including binder which whenapplied to form a thin (e.g., 100 μm) wet thickness coating film on afreshly-sanded smooth wood surface, will when dried not hide both thewood grain and its texture. When a semi-transparent stain is applied towood, the wood grain and its texture normally both remain noticeable,whereas when a solid color (viz., opaque) stain is applied the grainnormally becomes hidden while the texture normally remains noticeable. Astain typically will soak into a wood or other porous substrate (e.g.,concrete) to a much greater extent than will a paint.

When used with respect to a component which may be found in a paint,stain or colorant composition, the term “substantially free of” meanscontaining less than about 1 wt. % of the component based on thecomposition weight.

The term “water-borne” when used in respect to a paint, stain orcolorant means that the major liquid vehicle or carrier for the paint,stain or colorant is water.

The recitation of a numerical range using endpoints includes all numberssubsumed within that range (e.g., 1 to 5 includes 1, 1.5, 2, 2.75, 3,3.80, 4, 5, etc.).

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment 100 of the disclosedpaint and stain mixing system. Light-colored (e.g., white) base paint orstain container 102 holds light colored liquid base paint or stain 104containing at least one non-infrared-absorptive light-colored pigment(e.g., titanium dioxide, not shown in FIG. 1). The upper surface 106(shown in phantom view) of base paint or stain 104 is located asufficient distance D1 below container lid 108 so that a headspace 110is available for the addition of one or more colorants to prepare acustom-tinted paint or stain with a custom hue. Handle 111 may be usedto carry container 102. Optional gray base paint or stain container 112holds gray liquid base paint or stain 114 containing a mixture oflight-colored or white pigment and non-infrared-absorptive dark pigment.The upper surface 116 (also shown in phantom view) of gray base paint orstain 114 is located a sufficient distance D2 below container lid 118 sothat a headspace 120 is available for the addition of one or morecolorants to prepare a darkened paint or stain with a custom hue.Distance D2 typically will be greater than distance D1 owing to thegreater colorant amounts which might be required to tint base paint orstain 114 to a satisfactory hue. Handle 121 may be used to carrycontainer 112. The disclosed system and method may optionally employ afurther base or bases (not shown in FIG. 1), for example a clear basepaint or stain for making deep colored custom tints. Base paint or staincontainers 102 or 112 may be filled with concentrated colorant usingmanual colorant dispenser 130. Dispenser 130 includes cabinet 132 onwhich is mounted shelf 134 where containers 102 or 112 may be placed forcolorant addition. Turntable 136 includes a series of refillablecolorant dispenser canisters (twelve in this case, four of which arenumbered as 138 a, 138 b, 138 c and 138 d) containing a point-of-salearray of liquid colorants. One of the colorant canisters (e.g., canister138 a) contains an infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, another(e.g., canister 138 b) contains a non-infrared absorptive black pigment,and the remaining colorant canisters preferably are substantially freeof infrared-absorptive pigments. When dispensed into the base paints orstains, the disclosed colorants can provide custom-tinted paints orstains in a variety of tints (e.g., at least red, blue and green tints).Canister 138 d includes a metered dispensing cylinder 140 d containing apiston and connecting link (neither of which is shown in FIG. 1) joinedto movable handle 142 d whose position can be adjusted vertically alongcylinder 140 d to provide for the metered delivery of colorant fromcanister 138 d through dispensing outlet 144 d and into a container suchas base paint or stain container 102 or 112 placed on shelf 134. Theremaining canisters include similar but unnumbered metered dispensingcylinders, pistons, connecting links, handles and dispensing outlets.Release lever 150 permits turntable 136 to be rotated as needed to bringeach colorant canister in line above shelf 134 and locked into placewhile colorant is metered and dispensed into a base paint or staincontainer.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of an embodiment 200 of the disclosedpaint and stain mixing system. Base paint or stain containers 102 and112 are as in FIG. 1, and may be filled with colorant using automatedcolorant dispenser 202. Dispenser 202 includes a shelf 204 wherecontainers 102 or 112 may be placed for colorant addition. Cabinet 206holds a series of replaceable colorant dispenser canisters (sixteen inthis case, four of which are numbered as 208 a, 208 b, 208 c and 208 d)containing a point-of-sale array of liquid colorants. One of thecolorant canisters (e.g., canister 208 a) contains aninfrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, another (e.g., canister 208b) contains a non-infrared absorptive black pigment, and the remainingcolorant canisters preferably are substantially free ofinfrared-absorptive pigments. When dispensed into the base paints orstains, the disclosed colorants will provide custom-tinted paints orstains in a variety of tints. Concentrated colorant is dispensed fromthe canisters through suitable internal plumbing in cabinet 206 (notshown in FIG. 2) and suitable dispensing nozzles (not shown in FIG. 2)positioned in dispensing head 210, and thence into a base paint or staincontainer. A monitor 212 and keyboard 214 permit information andcommands to be entered into dispenser 202. A barcode reader (not shownin FIG. 2) may be used to read information from paint or stain samplecards or base paint or stain containers to assist in controlling thesystem. A power button 216 and emergency off button 220 may be used tostart and stop dispenser 202.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a point-of-sale colorant array 300 withtwelve containers 302 through 324. Container 302 includes side 326,bottom 328, top 330 and label 332, and contains an infrared-absorptiveblack liquid colorant. Top 330 preferably is puncturable, shearable orotherwise penetrable, and may resemble the top used in soup cans.Container 304 contains a non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant.Containers 306 through 324 contain non-infrared absorptive pigments, andrespectively provide white, green, blue, red, magenta, yellow, mediumyellow, yellow oxide, red oxide and orange colorants. The colorants incontainers 304 through 324 preferably are substantially free of or freeof infrared-absorptive pigments, and colorant 302 preferably is the onlycolorant in the array containing infrared-absorptive pigment.

A variety of liquid base paints, stains and colorants may be used in thedisclosed system and method. The base paints and stains normally willcontain one or more polymeric binders and one or more pigments, and mayin addition contain one or more vehicles or carriers and one or moreadjuvants. The colorants normally will contain one or more pigments, andmay in addition contain one or more vehicles or carriers and one or moreadjuvants.

The binders may be in a variety of forms including latex polymers andsolution polymers. Exemplary binders include but are not limited toacrylic copolymers, styrene/acrylic copolymers, vinyl acetatecopolymers, vinyl acetate/acrylic copolymers, vinyl versatic acidester/acrylic copolymers, ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers,styrene/butadiene copolymers, polyesters, drying oil modified polymerssuch as polyesters and polyurethanes, polyamides, epoxy esters,polyureas, polyurethanes, polysiloxanes, silicones, fluorinatedcopolymers such as vinylidene fluoride, and blends of any of the abovepolymeric binders. The base paints, stains or colorants may include acomponent or components of a multicomponent (e.g., two component)reactive system for the binder such as a component of anisocyanate-polyamine, isocyanate-polyol, epoxy-polyamine,carbodiimide-polyacid, aziridine-polyacid, melamine-polyol, or ureaformaldehyde-polyol system. The binder may for example represent about 5to about 99 volume percent of the dried coating volume. The volumesolids, as defined by the fractional volume of dry paint ingredients inthe as-supplied wet paint, may for example represent about 5 to about 80volume percent of the base paint. The pigment volume concentration, asdefined by the fractional volume of pigment in the dry paintingredients, may for example represent 0 to about 95 volume percent ofthe base paint. The TiO₂ volume concentration in a TiO₂-containing whitebase paint, as defined by the fractional volume of TiO₂ in the dry paintingredients, may for example represent 1 to about 30 volume percent ofthe base paint. The glass transition temperature for the polymericbinder may for example be about −20 to about 60° C. The base paintviscosity may for example be about 60 to about 140 Krebs units.

A variety of pigments may be employed in the base paints, stains andcolorants. The pigments desirably form a stable dispersion that does notrequire agitation prior to use. The pigments in the base paint or stainand one or more of the pigments (and preferably all but theinfrared-absorptive black pigment) in the array of colorants arenon-infrared-absorptive. The light-colored base paint or stain normallywill include a light (e.g., white) non-infrared-absorptive pigment andthe array of colorants normally will include at least six colorantsrespectively containing non-infrared-absorptive black pigment,infrared-absorptive black pigment and at least four further colorantscontaining non-infrared-absorptive white, yellow-hued, green-hued,blue-hued and red-hued pigments. The colorant array may also includecolorants with other hues, e.g., additional non-infrared-absorptiveconcentrated liquid colorants such as medium yellow, yellow oxide, redoxide and magenta, or additional colorants for use in transparent orsemi-transparent stains, e.g., transparent yellow iron oxide ortransparent red iron oxide. Aside from the colorant containingnon-infrared-absorptive black pigment, the remainder of the colorantarray desirably is free of or substantially free of infrared-absorptivepigments, and the pigments in such remainder array may consist of orconsist essentially of non-infrared-absorptive pigments. One or more ofthe colorants (e.g., the colorant containing non-infrared-absorptiveblack pigment) may be provided with appropriate packaging, labeling,software controls or other measures to prevent accidentalcross-contamination of non-infrared-absorptive custom color paints orstains by a colorant containing infrared-absorptive pigment.

If sufficient space is available in the intended colorant dispenser, thecolorant array may optionally be supplemented by one or more extracolorants containing substantial amounts of infrared-absorptive pigments(e.g., brown oxide or raw umber pigments), for use in mixing customcolor paints or stains for situations (e.g., some interior painting) inwhich infrared absorption might not be objectionable. These extracolorants might be provided in hues different from or matching those ofthe non-infrared-absorptive colorants but with appropriate packaging,labeling, software controls or other measures to prevent accidentalcross-contamination of non-infrared-absorptive custom color paints orstains made with the disclosed system and method. When suchinfrared-absorptive extra colorants are present, they will not beconsidered to be part of the disclosed point-of-sale array of colorantsincluding infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant,non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, and additional liquidcolorants made with non-infrared-absorptive pigments, and will insteadbe regarded as supplementing the array.

Exemplary non-infrared-absorptive dark pigments may be inorganic ororganic in nature, and include but are not limited to those referred toin U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,458,848 B2, 6,616,744 B1, 6,989,056 B2 and 7,157,112B2. Inorganic pigments are especially desirable and include single ormixed metal oxides formed from a variety of metals, e.g., from aluminum,antimony, bismuth, boron, chromium, cobalt, gallium, indium, iron,lanthanum, lithium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel,niobium, silicon, tin, vanadium or zinc. Exemplary metal oxides includeCr₂O₃, Al₂O₃, V₂O₃, Ga₂O₃, Fe₂O₃, Mn₂O₃, Ti₂O₃, In₂O₃, TiBO₃, NiTiO₃,MgTiO₃, CoTIO₃, ZnTiO₃, FeTiO₃, MnTiO₃, CrBO₃, NiCrO₃, FeBO₃, FeMoO₃,FeSn(BO₃)₂, BiFeO₃, AlBO₃, Mg₃Al₂Si₃O₁₂, NdAlO₃, LaAlO₃, MnSnO₃, LiNbO₃,LaCoO₃, MgSiO₃, ZnSiO₃ and Mn(Sb,Fe)O₃. The metal oxide may have acorundum-hematite crystal lattice structure as described in theabove-mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 6,454,848 B2, or may be a host componenthaving a corundum-hematite crystalline structure which contains as aguest component one or more elements selected from aluminum, antimony,bismuth, boron, chromium, cobalt, gallium, indium, iron, lanthanum,lithium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, niobium,silicon, tin, vanadium and zinc. A variety of non-infrared-absorptivedark pigments are commercially available, including mixed metal oxidepigments such as those supplied by Ferro Corporation (Cleveland, Ohio)under the COOL COLORS™ and ECLIPSE™ trademarks, for example V-778 COOLCOLORS IR Black, V-780 COOL COLORS IR Black, V-799 COOL COLORS IR Black,10201 ECLIPSE Black, 10202 ECLIPSE Black and 10203 ECLIPSE Black; mixedmetal oxide pigments such as those supplied by Shepherd Color Company(Cincinnati, Ohio) under the ARTIC™ trademark, for example ARTIC Black376, ARTIC Black 10C909, ARTIC Black 411 and ARTIC Black 30C940; mixedmetal oxide pigments such as those supplied by Tomatec America, Inc.(Florence, Ky.) under the numbers 42-707A and 707V10; and perylene-basedor other organic colorants such as those supplied by BASF (Florham Park,N.J.) under the PALIOGEN™ trademark including PALIOGEN Black S 0084. Avariety of non-infrared-absorptive pigments in colors other than blackmay be obtained from these same or other suppliers and employed in thebase paints, stains or colorant array. In some instances these pigmentsmay also be referred to as dyes. Exemplary non-black pigments includeinorganic pigments such as titanium dioxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide,magnesium silicates, calcium carbonate, aluminosilicates, silica andvarious clays; organic pigments including plastic pigments such as solidbead pigments (e.g., polystyrene or polyvinyl chloride beads) andmicrosphere pigments containing one or more voids and vesiculatedpolymer particles (e.g., those discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,427,835,4,920,160, 4,594,363, 4,469,825, 4,468,498, 4,880,842, 4,985,064,5,041,464, 5,036,109, 5,157,084, 5,409,776, and 5,510,422). Otherexemplary non-infrared-absorptive pigments include EXPANCEL™ 551DE20acrylonitrile/vinyl chloride expanded particles (from Expancel Inc.,Duluth, Ga.), SIL-CEL™ 43 glass micro cellular fillers (from SilbricoCorporation, Hodkins, Ill.), FILLITE™ 100 ceramic spherical particles(from Trelleborg Fillite Inc., Norcross, Ga.), SPHERICEL™ hollow glassspheres (from Potter Industries Inc., Valley Forge, Pa.), 3M ceramicmicrospheres including grades G-200, G-400, G-600, G-800, W-210, W-410,and W-610 (from 3M, St. Paul, Minn.); 3M hollow microspheres including3M Performance Additives iM30K (also from 3M), INHANCE™ UH 1900polyethylene particles (from Fluoro-Seal Inc., Houston, Tex.), andBIPHOR aluminum phosphate (from Bunge Fertilizantes S. A., Brazil).Exemplary infrared-absorptive pigments include carbon black, black ironoxide, brown oxide and raw umber. Colorants or colorant arrayscontaining entirely inorganic pigments or pigment mixtures may bepreferred where custom-tinted paints or stains having maximum exteriordurability are desired.

When the available number of colorant dispenser canisters is limited(e.g., when using 12 canister dispensers), the number of colorant StockKeeping Units (SKUs) may be reduced by recognizing that some individualcolorants are themselves mixtures of pigments which may be replaced witha precisely-metered blend of individual colorants. For example, manycustom color paint systems employ one or more earth-tone colorantsvariously referred to using names such as brown oxide, raw umber orumber. Although brown oxide colorant is sometimes referred to as beingmade from a single pigment (e.g., PBr7 natural iron oxide), it mayactually have been made using a blend of red and yellow oxides (e.g.,PR101 red iron oxide and PY42 yellow iron oxide) shaded with carbonblack (e.g., PBk7 carbon black) to match a specific color target. Rawumber or umber earth-tone colorants (which may collectively be referredto as “raw umber” colorants) likewise may have been made from a blend ofcolored oxides and carbon black. These blends of individual pigments areundesirably infrared-absorptive due to the carbon black presence, butfor exterior paint or stain coloration may be replaced by colorantblends wholly made from (or substantially wholly made from)non-infrared-absorptive pigments of appropriate coloration. Theresulting replacement colorant blends may be dispensed into the basepaint or stain as individual pigments using an automated colorantdispenser having a suitably low minimum fluid dispensing quantity (e.g.,a minimum fluid dispensing quantity less than 0.01 fluid ounce (<0.3mL)) so as to enable accurate replication of hues made using theoriginal infrared-absorptive blend but with non-infrared absorbingcolorants. Further details regarding the manner in which such blends maybe dispensed may be found in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/141,006 filed Jun. 17, 2008 and entitled EXPANDED COLOR SPACEARCHITECTURAL PAINT AND STAIN TINTING SYSTEM. For example, a blend madeusing precisely-metered small amounts of non-infrared-absorptive yellowoxide colorant, non-infrared-absorptive red oxide colorant andnon-infrared-absorptive black pigment may be dispensed into the basepaint or stain whenever an exterior paint or stain with a brown oxide orraw umber tint is required, and a blend made using precisely-meteredsmall amounts of yellow oxide colorant, red oxide colorant and aninfrared-absorptive carbon black colorant may be dispensed into the basepaint or stain when an interior paint or stain with a brown oxide or rawumber tint is required.

An exemplary array of concentrated liquid colorants suitable forproviding custom-tinted non-infrared-absorptive paints or stains in atleast 1000 unique point-of-sale colors could for example be made usingthe nine colorant hues shown below in Table A:

TABLE A Nine Colorant Array Preferred Wt. % Colorant Hue Pigment(s)Pigment Black CI PBK7 5-15 Black PALIOGEN S 0084 10-60  White CI PW630-60  Green CI PG7 5-50 Blue CI PB15:2 5-30 Red CI PR3, CI PR112, CIPR209 5-70 or CI 254 Yellow CI PY65, CI PY73, CI PY74 5-30 or CI PY184Yellow Oxide CI PY42 30-70  Red Oxide CI PR101 30-70 

The array may include additional non-infrared-absorptive colorants.Exemplary arrays of 12, 14 and 16 non-infrared absorptive colorants areshown below in Tables B, C and D:

TABLE B Twelve Colorant Array Preferred Wt. % Colorant Hue Pigment(s)Pigment Black CI PBK7 5-15 Black PALIOGEN S 0084 10-60  White CI PW630-60  Green CI PG7 5-50 Blue CI PB15:2 5-30 Red CI PR3, CI PR112, CIPR209 5-70 or CI 254 Magenta CI PR122 4-25 Yellow CI PY65, CI PY73, CIPY74 5-30 or CI PY184 Medium Yellow CI PY74 or PY65 10-50  Yellow OxideCI PY42 30-70  Red Oxide CI PR101 30-70  Orange CI PO74 5-30

TABLE C Fourteen Colorant Array Preferred Wt. % Colorant Hue Pigment(s)Pigment Black CI PBK7 5-15 Black PALIOGEN S 0084 10-60  White CI PW630-60  Green CI PG7 5-50 Blue CI PB15:2 5-30 Red CI PR3, CI PR112, CIPR209 5-70 or CI 254 Magenta CI PR122 4-25 Yellow CI PY65, CI PY73, CIPY74 5-30 or CI PY184 Medium Yellow CI PY74 or PY65 10-50  Yellow OxideCI PY42 30-70  Red Oxide CI PR101 30-70  Orange CI PO74 5-30 TransparentYellow Oxide CI PY42 10-50  Transparent Red Oxide CI PR101 10-50 

TABLE D Sixteen Colorant Array Preferred Wt. % Colorant Hue Pigment(s)Pigment Black CI PBK7  5-15 Black PALIOGEN S 0084 10-60 White CI PW630-60 Green CI PG7  5-50 Green Chromium Oxide CI PG17 25-70 Blue CIPB15:2  5-30 Cobalt Aluminate Blue CI PB28 25-70 Red CI PR3, CI PR112,CI PR209  5-70 or CI 254 Magenta CI PR122  4-25 Yellow CI PY65, CI PY73,CI PY74  5-30 or CI PY184 Medium Yellow CI PY74 or PY65 10-50 YellowOxide CI PY42 30-70 Red Oxide CI PR101 30-70 Orange CI PO74  5-30Transparent Yellow Oxide CI PY42 10-50 Transparent Red Oxide CI PR10110-50

Mixtures of pigments may be used to make individual colorants in thedisclosed arrays. For example, a red colorant may be made from a mixtureof CI RY 112 and CI PR209 pigments. A variety of pigments may also beused to obtain a specific color index value. For example, a CI PR101transparent red iron oxide pigment may employ SICOTRANS™ Red L 2816 orSICOTRANS Red L 2817 from BASF, and a CI PR101 transparent yellow ironoxide pigment may employ SICOTRANS Yellow L 1915 or SICOTRANS Yellow L1916 from BASF.

The base paints, stains and colorants may be solvent-borne, water-borne,or 100% solids. A variety of vehicles or carriers may be employed insolvent-borne or water-borne embodiments. Exemplary solvents (andexemplary volatile organic compounds or VOCs which may be added towater-borne embodiments to improve coating properties or to aid incoating application) include glycol ethers, organic esters, aromaticcompounds, and ethylene or propylene glycols. The disclosed base paints,stains and colorants preferably are low VOC dispersions containing 0.01to less than 8 wt. % VOCs, more preferably 0.01 to less than 6 wt. %VOCs, yet more preferably 0.01 to less than 4 wt. % VOCs, and mostpreferably 0.01 to less than 2 wt. % VOCs based upon the total liquidcomposition weight. The disclosed colorants preferably also areuniversal colorants whose vehicles and other ingredients render themsuitable for use in solvent-borne, water-borne and 100% solids paint orstain formulations.

The disclosed base paints, stains, colorants and finished tinted paintsor stains may include a variety of adjuvants, including but not limitedto adhesion promoters, antioxidants, biocides, buffers, coalescingagents, defoamers, dispersants, dyes, extender fillers, humectants,leveling agents, neutralizers, optical brighteners, pearlescents,plasticizers, polymeric additives, preservatives, reactive diluents,rheology modifiers or thickeners, surfactants, tackifiers, ultravioletstabilizers (e.g., hindered amine light stabilizers) and waxes.

The liquid colorants desirably have PVC values of about 0.1 to about 30vol. %, preferably about 0.5 to about 25 vol. %, and more preferablyabout 1 to about 25 vol. %. The amount of colorant(s) added to a 1gallon (3.78 L) nominal container of base paint or stain will vary inpart depending on the base paint, stain or colorant PVC values and mayfor example range from about 0.00065 fluid ounces (0.19 mL) to about 16fluid ounces (473 mL) of colorant addition, with larger amountstypically being employed in a clear base paint or stain and smalleramounts typically being employed in a white base paint or stain. Thefinished tinted paints or stains desirably have PVC values of about 0.5to about 85 vol. % and preferably about 1 to about 50 vol. %. Thefinished tinted paints or stains may for example have a TSR greater than10, greater than 15, greater than 20, greater than 25 or greater than35. The finished tinted paints and stains desirably are made by addingone or more colorants to a single base paint or stain, and withoutadding other ingredients such as additional binders, additional dryingredients or other adjuvants.

The base paints and stains typically will be packaged in containerssuitable for point-of-sale mixing of small batch lots in custom colorsand subsequent sale in the same container to the end user of acustom-tinted paint or stain. Exemplary small batch lot base paint orstain container sizes are about one half pint, one pint, one quart, oneliter, one gallon, four liter, five gallon or 20 liter containers,corresponding to base paint or stain containers from about 0.2 to 20 L.The base paint or stain container typically will be equipped with aremovable lid, cap or other closure for an opening through whichcolorant may be dispensed into the base paint or stain. Depending on theamount of pigment already present in a base paint or stain, the basepaint or stain container typically will have a small headspace (e.g.,about 1 to about 15% of the container volume) for colorant addition. Forexample, a nominal one gallon (3.79 L) clear base paint or staincontainer may hold up to about 112 fluid ounces (3.31 L) or up to about116 fluid ounces (3.43 L) of the base paint or stain, respectivelyleaving at least about 16 fluid ounces (0.47 L or about 13% of the totalcontainer volume) or at least about 12 fluid ounces (0.35 L or about 9%of the total container volume) available for colorant addition. Anominal one gallon (3.79 L) white base paint or stain container may forexample hold about 128 fluid ounces (3.79 L) of the base paint or stain,with only a small headspace (e.g., about 0.04 L or about 1% of the totalcontainer volume) available for colorant addition. When additional basepaints or stains of intermediate lightness are employed, they likewisemay have intermediate available headspace volumes for colorant addition.For example, a three base system may employ the white and clear basepaints or stains mentioned above, together with a gray base whosecontainer has up to about 120 fluid ounces (3.55 L) or up to about 124fluid ounces (3.57 L) of base paint or stain with at least about 8 fluidounces (0.24 L) or at least about 4 fluid ounces (0.12 L) of headspaceavailable for colorant addition. Additional non-infrared-absorptivechromatic base paints or stains (e.g., red, blue or yellow base paintsor stains) may be employed if desired for making strongly-tinted custompaint shades with potential one coat hiding power.

The colorants typically will be packaged in containers suitable for usein the chosen colorant dispenser(s), and sold to the dispenser owner oroperator in a point-of-sale custom tinting facility rather than to theend user of a custom-tinted paint or stain. Exemplary small batch lotcolorant container sizes are about 0.5, 1, 2 or 3 quarts; about 1gallon; or about 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 liters, corresponding to colorantcontainers from about 0.5 to about 5 L. Exemplary colorant containersinclude boxes, cans, cartridges, jars, pouches (e.g., sealed pouchesmade of metal or plastic), squeeze bottles, syringes, tubes (e.g.,collapsible tubes such as toothpaste-style tubes made of metal orplastic, and more rigid tubes equipped with movable pistons or plungerssuch as caulking-style tubes made of metal, plastic or paper) and othercontainers in which the colorant can be sealed for storage and shipmentand, when needed to replace an empty container, placed in an appropriateslot or other receptacle or poured into an appropriate hopper or othervessel in the colorant dispenser so that colorant may be dispensed bythe colorant dispenser in controlled amounts. The containers may besupplied to the dispenser owner or operator in a can or other sealedcontainer designed to be opened using a can opener or othercan-puncturing device. The containers may be equipped with amanually-openable closure such as an openable and reclosable cap, or maybe equipped with an irreversibly openable closure such as a tear-offseal or rupturable septum. In any event, once the container has beenopened, colorant may be supplied to the colorant dispenser and thenceinto the base paint or stain container. Desirably the container,colorant dispenser or both have a nozzle, adapter orifice or otherdesign which facilitates clean entry of the colorant into the colorantdispenser with minimal spillage or waste before or after use. Assupplied to the dispenser owner or operator, the colorant containertypically will include little or no headspace.

A variety of manual or automated colorant dispensers may be used in thedisclosed system and method, including the COROB™ D50 manual colorantdispenser with a 1/48 fluid ounce (0.62 mL) minimum dispensing capacityfrom CPS Color Equipment, Inc., the ACCUTINTER™ 1500, 2000, 7000 and8000 series automated colorant dispensers with a 1/384 fluid ounce(0.077 mL) minimum dispensing quantity from Fluid Management, Inc., andthe Sample Dispensing System automated colorant dispenser with a 1/1024fluid ounce (0.029 mL) minimum dispensing quantity from FluidManagement, Inc. Additional automated paint or stain colorant dispensersinclude the COROB MODULA HF™ machine with a 1/192 fluid ounce (0.153 mL)minimum dispensing quantity from CPS Color Equipment, Inc., and theTATOCOLOR™ machine with a 1/384 fluid ounce (0.077 mL) minimumdispensing quantity from CPS Color Equipment, Inc. The chosen dispensermay for example have a minimum fluid dispensing quantity less than 0.01fluid ounce (<0.3 mL), preferably less than 0.007 fluid ounce (<0.2 mL)and more preferably less than 0.005 fluid ounce (<0.15 mL). Dispenserswith even smaller minimum dispensing quantities may be employed, e.g.less than 0.001 fluid ounce (<0.03 mL) or less than 0.0002 (<0.014 mL)minimum dispensing quantities, but such dispensers may also requirelonger amounts of time to prepare strong colors in large containers.

The disclosed custom-color architectural paint and stain tinting systemsmay be applied to a variety of substrates, e.g., asphalt (includingasphalt composition shingles), cement, cement fiberboard, ceramics,concrete, metal, plastic and wood (including monolithic, engineered andveneered wood).

The invention is further described in the following Examples, in whichall parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise indicated.

PREPARATORY EXAMPLE

A semi-gloss pastel base paint was prepared by combining the ingredientslisted below in Table E.

TABLE E Ingredient or Step Supplier Parts Grind in a High SpeedDisperser TI-PURE ™ R-746 Titanium Dioxide E.I. DuPont de 349.8 Nemours& Co. TAMOL ™ 731A hydrophobic copolymer Rohm and Haas Co. 7.5 BYK ™-348Surfactant Byk-Chemie 1.0 TEGO ™ FOAMEX 810 Defoamer Evonik Industries0.5 KATHON ™ LX 1.5% Biocide Rohm and Haas Co. 1.6 Add Grind to MixingLetdown Water 20.9 RHOPLEX ™ VSR-1050 Acrylic Rohm and Haas Co. 524.2Emulsion Ammonia (28%) 0.7 BYK-348 Surfactant Byk-Chemie 1.0 TEGO ™FOAMEX 810 Defoamer Evonik Industries 0.5 ACRYSOL ™ RM-2020 NPR RheologyRohm and Haas Co. 30.5 Modifier ACRYSOL SCT-275 Rheology Modifier Rohmand Haas Co. 4.3 Water 121.3 Total 1063.8

Example 1

A dark shaded finished interior paint may be created by placing 0.92 L(31 fluid ounces) of the Preparatory Example base paint in a 0.95 L (1quart) point-of-sale paint can equipped with a removable,friction-sealed lid, leaving about 0.03 L (1 fluid ounce) of headspaceabove the base paint. Using an automated or manual colorant dispenser,0.03 L (1 fluid ounce) of No. 1991 Predispersed Carbon Black Colorantfrom CCA/EPS may be added to the base paint. The paint can may be sealedby replacing the lid, and the paint may be mixed to a uniform color byplacing the sealed can in a vibratory paint shaker for 3 minutes. Basedon optical modeling, the resulting custom-tinted paint would have a darkgray color and an L* value less than 60, and would contain a significantquantity of infrared-absorptive carbon black pigment.

Example 2

Using the method of Example 1, a dark shaded finished exterior paint maybe made by adding 0.03 L (1 fluid ounce) of an aqueous colorantcontaining 10 wt. % Predispersed Perylene Black pigment (PALIOGEN S 0084from BASF) to a paint can containing 0.92 L (31 fluid ounces) of thePreparatory Example base paint, and mixing using the vibratory shakerfor 3 minutes. The resulting custom-tinted paint would have a dark grayshade color, an L* value less than 60 and a TSR greater than 35.

Example 3

Using the method of Example 2, a red shaded finished paint may be madeby adding 0.02 L (0.75 fluid ounces) of No. 1947 Predispersed Redcolorant from CCA/EPS and 0.007 L (0.25 fluid ounces) of the Example 2Predispersed Perylene Black colorant to a paint can containing 0.92 L(31 fluid ounces) of the Preparatory Example base paint, and mixingusing the vibratory shaker for 3 minutes. The resulting custom-tintedpaint would have a red shade color and a TSR greater than 35.

Example 4

Using the method of Example 2, a tan shaded finished paint may be madeby adding 0.01 L (0.33 fluid ounces) of No. 1977 Predispersed Yellowcolorant from CCA/EPS, 0.01 L (0.33 fluid ounces) of No. 1935Predispersed Red colorant from CCA/EPS and 0.01 L (0.33 fluid ounces) ofthe Example 2 Predispersed Perylene Black colorant to a paint cancontaining 0.92 L (31 fluid ounces) of the Preparatory Example basepaint, and mixing using the vibratory shaker for 3 minutes. Theresulting custom-tinted paint would have a tan shade color and a TSRgreater than 35.

Example 5

Using the method of Example 2, a green shaded finished paint may be madeby adding 0.02 L (0.75 fluid ounces) of No. 1921 Predispersed Greencolorant from CCA/EPS and 0.007 L (0.25 fluid ounces) of the Example 2Predispersed Perylene Black colorant to a paint can containing 0.92 L(31 fluid ounces) of the Preparatory Example base paint, and mixingusing the vibratory shaker for 3 minutes. The resulting custom-tintedpaint would have a green shade color and a TSR greater than 35.

Having thus described the preferred embodiments of the presentinvention, those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that theteachings found herein may be applied to yet other embodiments withinthe scope of the claims hereto attached. The complete disclosure of allpatents, patent documents, and publications are incorporated herein byreference as if individually incorporated.

We claim:
 1. A point-of-sale custom color system for tinting base paints and stains, the system comprising: a) at least one light-colored non-infrared-absorptive base paint or stain packaged in a point-of-sale container with a volume of about 0.2 to 20 L equipped with an openable and recloseable lid, cap or other closure for an opening through which colorant may be dispensed from an automated or manual colorant dispenser into the base paint or stain; and b) an array of colorants including (i) an infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, (ii) a non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, and (iii) one or more additional liquid colorants made with non-infrared-absorptive pigments, the colorants being packaged in containers with a volume of about 0.5 to about 5 L and from which colorant may be supplied to such a colorant dispenser and thence dispensed into the base paint or stain.
 2. A system according to claim 1 further comprising a gray liquid base paint or stain containing white pigment and non-infrared-absorptive dark pigment.
 3. A system according to claim 1 wherein the non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant contains one or more organic pigments.
 4. A system according to claim 1 wherein the non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant contains one or more mixed metal oxide pigments.
 5. A system according to claim 1 wherein the non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant contains one or more pigments comprising a single or mixed metal oxide formed from aluminum, antimony, bismuth, boron, chromium, cobalt, gallium, indium, iron, lanthanum, lithium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, niobium, silicon, tin, vanadium or zinc.
 6. A system according to claim 1 wherein the additional liquid colorants are substantially free of infrared-absorptive pigment.
 7. A system according to claim 1 wherein the additional liquid colorants do not contain infrared-absorptive pigment.
 8. A system according to claim 1 wherein the colorant array comprises colorants respectively containing non-infrared-absorptive black pigment, infrared-absorptive black pigment and at least seven further colorants respectively containing non-infrared-absorptive white, green, blue, red, yellow, yellow oxide and red oxide pigments.
 9. A system according to claim 8 wherein the colorant array further comprises at least three colorants respectively containing non-infrared-absorptive magenta, medium yellow and orange pigments.
 10. A system according to claim 1 wherein the colorant array contains no more than 12 colorants.
 11. A system according to claim 1 wherein aside from the infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant, the remaining colorants in the colorant array may each be added to a clear base paint in an amount sufficient to provide an opaque 40 μm dry thickness coating film having a Total Solar Reflectance of at least
 10. 12. A system according to claim 11 wherein the remaining colorants do not contain infrared-absorptive pigment.
 13. A system according to claim 11 wherein the remaining colorants are each substantially free of carbon black.
 14. A system according to claim 11 wherein the remaining colorants do not contain carbon black.
 15. A system according to claim 1 wherein the colorant array includes non-infrared-absorptive yellow oxide and red oxide colorants, and the non-infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant and the non-infrared-absorptive yellow oxide and red oxide colorants may be dispensed into the base paint or stain using an automated colorant dispenser having a minimum fluid dispensing quantity less than 0.3 mL when an exterior paint or stain with a brown oxide or raw umber tint is required, and the infrared-absorptive black liquid colorant and the non-infrared-absorptive yellow oxide and red oxide colorants may be so dispensed into the base paint or stain when an interior paint or stain with a brown oxide or raw umber tint is required.
 16. A system according to claim 1 wherein the colorants can be dispensed into the base paint or stain to provide a custom-tinted paint or stain containing less than 8 wt. % volatile organic compounds. 